Survival on the Ice Planet
by LesBoredGuy
Summary: After the Outlaw Star crashes on an unknown planet, Jim and Aisha are left to fend for themselves. How did this happen? Are they being hunted by someone from there past? Can Jim and Aisha survive by relying only on each other? (post-series) (Jim/Aisha Friendship)
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own Outlaw Star**

 **A/N: Well I can't lie I don't expect really anyone to read this. Updates on The Outlaw Star Fanfiction page are almost non-existent but I just can't resist writing this story and seeing if anyone likes it. For this story I was slightly inspired by the Wolverine comic Old Man Logan: Bordertown. Anyone whose reading this and may have read that comic (which I don't think are any) you may not see the inspiration at first but maybe in later chapters. Jim and Aisha are my favorite characters in this series and I always liked there personal chemistry. To clarify this is a friendship story with a possible crush Jim could have on Aisha (we'll see). If I were to write an actual shipping story it would be with a much older Jim and in a sequel. Anyway here's chapter 1, hope if anyone reads this they enjoy it**

Chapter 1: Here We Are

Darkness and a piercing headache was all that Jim could see and hear right now. His eyes blinked as he began to awaken from his previously unconscious state, with a glaring white making up most of his distorted vision. He groaned and placed his hand to his temples in an attempt to sooth what felt like a constant beat in his head. After a few seconds, Jim senses were beginning to correct themselves allowing him to grasp where he was, a slight chill went up his spine while he heard the sound of blowing wind and dripping water.

Jim was being suspended from his seat inside the upside down cockpit of the Outlaw Star with only his seat-belt keeping him from a long drop. He looked around and noticed a massive hole was where the front monitor had been, giving a peek to the outside of the ship. Snow and a cold breeze greeted his face. Jim began to realize that he had been in a near fatal crash and began to worry about his comrades.

"GENE!?...GENE!" He repeatedly yelled as he tried to look up at the pilot seat to no avail, as his current position made it impossible to see. He thought he'd try to see if his other friends were okay "AISHA!?...SUZUKA!?" Jim looked to the sides to see that the other seats were empty as well. _What about Mel? She has to be here_. "MEL...CAN YOU HEAR ME!?"- Again he heard nothing. _How could Mel not be here she's a part of the ship?_ – "CAN ANYONE HEAR ME?!" Jim yelled with all his might in his last attempt to communicate.

There was no response, nothing but the harsh breeze coming from outside and the drip drop of water inside the cockpit. It was then that Jim looked directly down and noticed that the dipping water he kept hearing was falling directly below his suspended body. The better look he got at the water, the more he realized how strangely colored the water was. _Why is that water red?_ It was at that moment when Jim looked below his waist to see that the water was actually blood and it was coming from him. In his right leg was a big piece of metal shrapnel that protruded from his upper knee to his upper thigh. No doubt caused by the crashing of the ship.

It was here that Jim began to hyperventilate. What was going on? Why was he alone? Why were his friends not here? The questions began to pile one after the other, when suddenly he heard the exact thing he needed to hear.

"JIM, AISHA'S COMING" Jim sighed in sweet relief. Thank God, Aisha was here. Aisha limped inside the cockpit with a tattered cape and hair covered in snow allowing Jim to get a good look at her and caused him to gasp. Aisha's face had blood trailing down her head, across her left eye which was swollen shut and one of her arms dangling unceremoniously like it had been dislocated with an additional limp in her left leg. Jim had always known that Ctarl-Ctarl had an expedient healing factor, so Aisha was probably nearing the end of her body doing its work, which meant the initial damage done to her must have been much worse. She looked up at him with a smile that she was working through her pain to give.

"Don't worry Jim, I'll get you down" She attempted to assure the boy. When she inhaled through her nose; suddenly she felt sick and her good eye widened in fear. She smelled Jim's blood, something that brought immense terror to her. She could see a big puddle of Jim's blood dripping from his leg as she got closer and the smell got stronger, Aisha had to put a hand over her mouth due to her natural enhanced senses making it more potent. The smell of blood was only supposed to come from her enemies not Jim. Worry began to fill her mind, what if the shrapnel in Jim's leg had hit somewhere vital? They were not in a place where surgery was possible.

Jim looked at her with worry "Aisha are you okay?"

Aisha had to pull herself together, for Jim's sake "Yeah…I'm okay Jimmy lets just get you down"

"But, how am I gonna get down?"

He raised a good question. There was nothing but broken machinery and glass around Aisha so she couldn't stack anything high enough, nor was there anything for her to grab on to retrieve Jim. Which left only one thing to do; Aisha walked over to the frame of the broken front monitor of the ship, and lined up her dislocated shoulder in order to make sure she did this right.

"Jim, I'm gonna get you down but your gonna need to be brave for Aisha okay, could you do something for me?" She told him in a calming voice so not to scare him.

Jim nodded and decided to do what she told him.

"I want you to stay calm and count to three for me"

Putting a dislocated shoulder back into place was something she had done plenty of times but doing it always hurt.

Jim began with great hesitance "One…Two…Three!"

The sound of a metallic bang and crunch sounded as Aisha's shoulder popped back into its correct placement.

"Arghhh….huh…huh" Aisha panted and took sharp labored breaths. Jim called out her name fearing for her well being.

Aisha slightly whimpered like a hurt cat as she pulled herself off the floor and walked over to where Jim was hanging. For Jim looking at his friend struggle in such a way was unbearable. He just wanted to get out of this thing.

Aisha knew this was risky, she didn't know the extent the damage to his leg was and simply moving might make it worse, but there was no choice she had to get him out of there.

"Now Jim, I want you disconnect your seat-belt and I'll catch you" She calmly relayed to him

Jim looked mortified "But what if I hit the ground?"

"I give you my word; I won't let anything happen to you. Do you believe in me?"

Jim replied meekly "Yes"

"Then you should know a mighty Ctarl-Ctarl never goes back on there word" Aisha declared proudly.

Jim believed her, through out the past year of there friendship Aisha had always looked out for him. In the Grave of the Dragon she had protected him with no sense of self preservation and did so again at the Galactic Leyline. She never gave him a reason to doubt her, so he figured he shouldn't start now.

Jim unclipped his belt and allowed himself to fall. Aisha immediately went forward and caught him safely, but suddenly felt her bad leg buckle and give way. She landed on her back while protectively holding Jim to make sure she took all the brunt force.

Jim hissed as his leg stung but thankfully the pain subsided. Jim's face was greeted by the warm skin of Aisha's upper chest and for a brief moment he felt safe and content. Today was proving to be one of the most difficult days of his life and right now Aisha was proving to be his guardian angel.

"Are you ok Jimmy?" Aisha asked while huffing and puffing.

Jim put his head up showing a tired face "I'm okay. Thank you Aisha"

Aisha leaned her head back and was quietly overjoyed. She got him down but she knew it wasn't over; she needed to attend to his leg. Aisha had trained in first aid at the academy so she knew that she needed to get him somewhere to treat his leg without laying his wound bare to the elements. Jim slowly lifted himself up so he could sit straight while Aisha did the same. Jim hissed in pain, making Aisha flinch to assist him, but he raised his hand assure her that he was okay for the moment. Then Jim asked the question that he had been wondering since he first woke up.

"So where is everyone?"

…

Aisha wasn't sure herself, when she woke up she found herself in a pile of snow drenched in blood, no doubt from the wounds the crash had inflicted upon her. Thankfully when she woke up, her healing factor had already sealed up the more severe wounds. She had difficulty seeing at first due to one of her eyes being swollen shut. She looked around with her good eye in shock to see the crashed Outlaw Star battered, dented and turned upside-down. The right side engines were completely gone with the cockpit front window being smashed to oblivion. She thought perhaps the crash had dislodged her from the ship all the way outside, but the more she looked around it seemed that wasn't the case. From where she was to the ship itself, Aisha saw multiple drag marks and footprints leading past her and out into the vast wilderness which consisted of nothing but snow and mountains.

Before this had happened the crew of the Outlaw Star was simply on its way to a station to refill on supplies; when suddenly a mysterious projectile hit them out of nowhere and led them to where they are now. Someone must have found them after the crash and took the rest of the gang somewhere, "but why did they leave me here?" she wondered out loud.

Aisha began to consider her friends. She knew Gene and Suzu would be okay as they always seemed to be survivors like her and with Melfina's robotic body had come the advantage of not being mortally hurt very easily, not to mention Gene's always conscious effort to protect her. Her mind quickly turned to Jim and to the fear that perhaps someone so small might not survive such a crash like this, when suddenly she heard something from the ship that caused her ears to stand up.

"CAN ANYONE HEAR ME?!"

"Thank the god of all Ctarl-Ctarl" Aisha sighed in relief, before hissing in pain as she slowly limped over to the ship with one of her arms dangling.

…

After Aisha relayed her awakening to Jim, he simply groaned in frustration. Aisha and Jim had crash landed on some random planet that they were only passing by and knew next to nothing about it. This whole thing led to one more question that made this whole situation even worse. Jim looked to Aisha with a look of worry.

"So who do you think shot us down?"


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I Don't own outlaw Star**

 **A/N: Wow someone actually reviewed this I'm shocked and grateful. Thank you Ayala Atreides and TheRealXenocide for your reviews and insight. I have to say Ayala Atreides, that I'm also new to Outlaw Star as I only watched it for the first time about 3 months ago. After watching it I fell in love with the world and characters, sadly I found the fan-fiction page a bit lacking as most stories here are abandoned or unfinished (outlaw star is kind of that series that everybody loved but nobody watched). I'm glad you like my style TheRealXenocide, I find keeping the tone of this story difficult as it's supposed to be harsh while also relaying a sense of friendship that's growing stronger through that harshness, which is why reading wolverine comics tend to serve as good inspiration. I'm interested in what your Outlaw Star story would be about so when you finish it I will certainly check it out. To anyone who reads or reviews this check out breakaway-republic for the best outlaw star fan-fiction. He mostly inspired me when it comes to my own Outlaw Star writing.**

Chapter 2: Recovery

Right now Jim was angry with himself. Contrary to what Gene and the rest of the crew thought, the Outlaw Star didn't just survive battles out of pure luck. The young boy would spend long nights with no sleep, planning contingencies for any battle the Outlaw Star could face. There had been so many times the Outlaw Star survived due to his planning ahead. If Jim heard that a certain sector of space had pirates of great power, he would research all night about their capabilities from his sources to find out the best way to combat them; Gene had Fred, Jim had anonymous chat-rooms and news sites. If a pirate had a ship with stronger grappler arms, he would make sure there's were reinforced. If they had superior shields or armor, then they had missiles that made them useless. Gene's castor shells were not the only reason they would hurt for money. Upgrades were costly and just like Gilliam had told him many times "I am unlike any other ship" which meant all modifications had to be tailor made, which made things even more expensive. Jim on some nights became a nervous wreck; _What if I don't think of something and I let everyone down or we die_ he thought.

He never really told the crew what he did at night, in fact they barely noticed. The fear of whether or not tomorrow would be the day his best wasn't good enough haunted him in his dreams. Now his worse nightmare had come to life, he had failed his friends. When the Outlaw Star was shot down, it was like everything Jim had ever done in the past had never mattered. They weren't on some dangerous mission when it happened; they were doing the space equivalent of going to the gas station. The ship came down with one missile, he didn't know where it even came from and it was like they had been swatted down like a fly. So here he was the results of his failure being stuck on some desolate snow globe of a planet with only Aisha to be his companion.

"So who do you think shot us down?" he asked Aisha with a sense of failure.

Aisha ears slightly lowered and looked at Jim with concern and knew he was probably scared if he was asking her what was going on. Aisha had never been a very responsible person, sure she could hold a job to take care of herself, but when it came to caring for someone or something else she was hardly dependable. In fact the only time her parents allowed her a pet was when they gave her fish, which died due to her forgetting to feed it. But that was then, this is now and right now Jim needed her to take charge.

Aisha kneeled in front of Jim "How about we focus on getting your leg taken care of"

Jim nodded and understood that right now some of his questions would have to wait, right now surviving was what mattered.

Aisha slightly lifted Jim's leg and saw his pant leg had been torn with the shrapnel peeking out of his flesh. She had to be sure to breathe through her mouth and not through her nose as she found the smell of Jim's blood to be gag-inducing. As Aisha looked at Jim's leg she noticed that the blood coming from his leg was not actually coming from where the shrapnel hit but below it. Below the shrapnel was a gash in his leg from where the blood was actually coming from. Due to Aisha's first-aid training, she knew that it looked worse than it actually was. His wounds hadn't hit an artery so bleeding out wasn't the issue; sadly the wound was still big enough that infection was the real worry and that the bigger problem was that he was going to need stitches and it had to be now.

"Jim do we have a first-aid kit?"

Jim was trying to remain calm "yeah it's in the bathroom but look at the ship, What if it was destroyed"

"Don't worry about that okay, I'll take care of it" She replied with a comforting voice as she stood up

"Wait here I'll be back" despite being hurt she was able to jump just barely high enough to reach the doorway that lead to rest of the ship, with it being upside down it was slightly disorientating.

…

She did find the bathroom, but due to the ship not having power the door had to be opened manually or in Aisha's case pried open with her bare hands. After throwing the doors to the wayside water leaked out of the room and on to the floor as Aisha climbed inside. Thankfully laying on the ground was the first-aid kit; it had somehow survived the crash.

…

Jim knew Aisha was hiding something, the more he looked at his leg, the more he knew it could not be simply fixed with a band aid. His attention was diverted when Aisha dropped to the floor (or ceiling) of the cockpit with the first-aid kit in her hand.

"Here we go! Aisha Clan-Clan always pulls through" she declared kit in hand.

Jim had to admit Aisha's attitude was helping him remain calm, traditionally he would find Aisha's lively personality slightly grating but right now it became a sense of comfort. If she's not scared then why should he be?

Aisha was terrified at the prospect of what she was about to do. She kneeled down in front of Jim and opened the kit. She took out gauze and rubbing alcohol in search of the things that she needed, a stitching needle and pain killers. As she picked up the bottle of pills she discovered something that almost made her yell in obscenities. The bottle of pain killers was empty; no doubt Gene must have used them and never notified Jim to get new ones.

Jim was wondering why Aisha seemed frozen "Hey Aisha. Are you okay?"

"Of course, I just need to get everything ready" She replied with a forced smile, hands moving around in the kit, but not seemingly doing anything of importance.

Aisha didn't know what to do, they had no pain killers and no alcohol to dull the pain Jim would have to go through. She wasn't sure if she could do this, she could really use Melfina right now, she always seemed to know how to comfort people. Aisha knew she couldn't hide this anymore, she had to tell him.

"Jim, I'm gonna have to…"

"It's okay Aisha, I kinda know, I mean look at this" Jim told her in a matter-of-fact tone while pointing to his leg. "Gene left the bottle empty again didn't he?" he said with a sigh

"You know kid sometimes your too smart for your own good" she replied

"Well someone has to be the brains around here…and I'm not a kid" he jabbed in annoyance.

Aisha chuckled and lightly ruffled his hair. "Well right now you're proving to be quite the adult"

Aisha put her hand to his face. "I want you to look to away okay"

Jim could have sworn he felt some heat in his cheeks, through out the time they had spent together Aisha had never been this mature or sweet to him; _it must be just the cold_ he thought. He looked to the side in preparation for the incoming pain, when suddenly he felt a quick pain in the side of his neck. His sight began to blur as he fell to the side of the wall he sat against and lost consciousness.

Aisha did it out of desperation. She could not make Jim suffer the pain of fixing his leg. So she did what she normally did when she didn't know what to do, resort to violence. Ctarl-Ctarl combat training required them to know how to precisely hit the Vagus nerve on an opponent which would knock them out cold. Hurting Jim pained her but what else was she supposed to do.

After all that trouble, Aisha finally got to work on his leg. She pulled out the shrapnel from his leg which thankfully had avoided anything major and only let out a little blood. Aisha then grabbed a rag from the kit and poured rubbing alcohol over it and wiped the wounds as best she could before stitching it up. Then she pulled out the needle and thread and got to work, puncturing Jim's leg with the needle felt strange to her, Terrans were so fragile compared to Ctarl-Ctarl, Jim was so fragile. Thankfully it was over quick and she broke off the thread with one of her fangs. As she finished wrapping his leg with gauze after cleaning it, she breathed a sigh of relief. She looked at the sleeping boy and smiled, Jim looked peaceful so much so you would almost think this horrific day hadn't happened.

Aisha walked over to the opening of the cockpit and peered out. The sun was going down and she needed to make sure Jim wasn't cold. She tore off her cape which was a bit tattered and placed it over Jim to keep him warm. She sat down next to him and proceeded to place him in her arms in order to give him her body heat. Aisha right now had to do something she had never really done before, be responsible. Suddenly her ear picked up at what sounded like wolfs howling, it was a great distance away but it still worried her. She looked down at the boy in her arms asleep and whispered

"Jim, no matter what happens Aisha will be here"


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own Outlaw Star**

 **A/N: Wow I had hard time with this chapter, busy life and writing blocks can do that. Again I like to thank and respond to my readers. I'm glad the guest reviewer is enjoying my story so far but if you could please use a more a distinctive name, it just makes it easier for me. Admittedly I'm a little confused if your review is a suggestion or a request Isaac but I'm thankful for your review nonetheless. I can't say my story will have all the things you want in it but I think you'll be happy to know some of your suggestions were a part of the ideas I have for this story and that I might use a few of your suggestions as well. thank you for the review and I'm glad you are okay from your survival experience. Last but not least thank you archsage328 for checking out my story. I found your review quite insightful, your noticing of how I write Aisha is duly noted. To me Aisha can be hard to write due to this story being so serious and Aisha being such a firecracker. How many times I write Aisha saying her own name was something I wasn't sure how well would play out when people read it, and the more I look at my past chapters, I'm still not sure, so I pulled back on that to see how it plays. Outlaw Star is such a great show and I'm saddened that it's not as fondly remembered as Cowboy Bebop (which I also love). I can understand your frustration of having so many different ideas for other franchises. I'm huge fan of so many comic books, anime, cartoons and video games that it makes me want to try my hand at a bunch of stories. I've had a Legend of Zelda story that I would love to tell but I can't ever seem to write it. Hope you check out breakaway-republic stories, my favorite of his/hers was Roll of the Dice. I'm happy that you checked out my story and look forward to more reviews from those that read. Again thank you all and enjoy.**

 **Edit: (also sorry for the misspellings when I first posted this chapter,I went over and I think fixed all of them)**

Chapter 3: Let's get started

Jim was beginning to hope that waking up in pain would not become the norm for him. He was awakened to the sound of a dull snore resting above his head with soreness in his leg and neck. He remembered Aisha preparing him for some intense medical aid, only for him to wake up in her arms feelingly strangely warm despite some of the snow that had blown in overnight. As he quietly slid off of her as not to disturb her, he noticed a makeshift blanket that was covering his body that fell to the side. Jim saw that it was Aishas cape, then looked up at the catgirl herself. Aisha was out cold, sleeping like a rock with a small stream of drool coming down the side of her mouth (somehow it avoided his head). Thankfully for Ctarl-Ctarl sleep tended to be the best medicine (that and food) as Aisha cuts and scrapes were gone along with her swollen eye, which had healed completely over night. Jim smiled and took the cape and placed it over her, she didn't need it but Jim wanted to assist her any way he could, after what she had already done for him she deserved nothing less.

Jim looked at his leg and peeked under the bandages to see that Aisha had given him the proper care he needed. He figured that she had knocked him out in order to treat him considering the literal pain in his neck. It was crude but perhaps it was the best course of action. With a slight hiss he raised himself from the floor and began to try and walk as he balanced himself against the wall. Jim was able to put enough weight on his bad leg in order to limp across to the door way that led to the rest of the ship.

As he limped to the other side he knew he had two goals, Jim needed to review what had survived the crash in order to make provisions for himself and Aisha and maybe even more importantly check the backup main frame of the ship to see what had become of Gilliam. When Jim finally made it to the door way, he looked up to see how high it was in order to reach it and knew that for someone his size it was impossible. He sighed and knew that he needed Aisha but found himself wishing he didn't as he went back to her.

Jim shook her until he got a response.

"Nyannn...Jimmy what's wrong" speaking in almost a whisper as she wiped away the drool from her face like how a cat would with their paw.

When Jim saw this he found his thoughts going places he wasn't sure he wanted them to go and quickly shook his head. _There has got to be something wrong with me, I mean it's Aisha_.

"Nothing Aisha, I just need your help checking out the rest of the ship" he said while pointing up to the door.

Quickly Aisha jumped up and stretched like she had simply woken up from a good cat nap (no pun intended).

"Alright! Let's hurry, Because I'm starving!" She exclaimed as she put her cape back on and picked Jim up and jumped through the doorway. Her arm had also thankfully healed so it wasn't difficult and she was sure not to be too rough while holding Jim in consideration of his leg

…

Jim wasn't surprised by what her attention was on. Aishas stomach was traditionally her main focus when she woke up. While an upside down food storage left quite a mess, it wasn't really what concerned him. Jim was eating a box of cold cereal that while was pretty beat up had no impact on the food itself.

"Nooooo!" Aisha on the other hand found herself to be quite disappointed.

Before the crash had happened the crew was on their way to restock on supplies, which meant that the food supply consisted of mostly canned foods and cereal that Aisha could scarf down in a matter of minutes which wouldn't leave much for Jim not to mention would fail to satisfy her needs.

"This is unacceptable! how is a mighty Ctarl-Ctarl supposed to nourish themselves like this" she exclaimed, almost pulling her hair.

"want some of my cereal?" Jim offered the box to her casually while chewing. He knew she needed something more hearty but what else could he do.

Aisha simply sighed "It's alright Jim, Aisha is just gonna have to get her food the old fashion way"

"you mean hunt" he said in mid-bite.

"yup…I'll do it after we search the rest of the ship" she replied with a slight frown.

Jim didn't want to keep her waiting so the two of them quickly got to work on scavenging what they could, with Aisha helping Jim to get around of course and to open doors as they were all shut pretty tight. They had checked the rooms for anything useful. Suzuka's room sadly gave them nothing as she wasn't one to keep much in her room outside of the basic necessity such as clothes, hygiene products, etc. Jim's room almost made him want to cry as his precious technology had been obliterated from the crash, leaving nothing but broken glass and plastic.

Jim hoped that maybe Gene and Melfinas room (they had been sharing one for a while) would bring some much needed relief to their efforts as Gene usually kept their weapons in there. The two really should have known better by now as things haven't been really going their way. When Aisha opened the door a gust of cold wind greeted their face showing more snow than Jim already had wanted to see. Jims eyes widened in disbelief, there was no room it had been torn out from the crash.

"This just keeps getting better and better!" Jim yelled in anger, then mumbled more words that might not have been appropriate for someone his age.

…

Aisha usually saw it best not to interrupt Jim when he went into his tirades, she didn't think it would help him very much. While Jim sat in the hallway in order to calm himself down and rest his leg, Aisha went and checked her own room and the cargo. Thankfully she had found some knifes and usable blankets in her room, while the cargo had not been so lucky. They hadn't been making deliveries lately as Gene had prefer collecting bounties when they stopped at planets. she could understand that, after all what was life without the thrill of battle? As she walked around the empty room she saw a slight shine in the corner of her eye. As she walked closer she was able to see what it was, it was a black revolver laying on the floor. Aisha picked it up and looked at it quizzically and remembered where it probably came from. Two weeks ago Fred had Gene transport some guns to one of his collector friends the collection had consisted of rarities and common stock weaponry. It seemed that one had fallen out of storage and had been left behind.

Aisha felt strange holding the gun, sure she had seen Gene use these plenty of times but it seemed unnatural for her to carry one. Ctarl-Ctarl believed that true combat could only be experienced through personal strength, they had weapons but they were always ones that relied on physical strength not a weapon that did the work for them. Regardless they needed whatever they could find, so she placed it in the side of her pants and went back to Jim.

…

"How you doing Jim?" Aisha asked as she sat next to him.

"Fine, just… my leg just hurts right now and the cold ain't helping" he sighed.

"This is all we got huh" Aisha looked at their supplies which was slightly underwhelming.

Blankets for warmth, knifes and canned foods were what they had to work with. Now that they were done with that, it left only one thing left for Jim to do. Check on Gilliam

"Aisha, I need your help to open the hatch down the hall…I'm not…tall enough" Jim asked with slight embarrassment.

Aisha chuckled and proceeded to do as he asked. After the incident with the jewel thief's/terrorist the crew had dealt with. Jim thought it best to have a back-up plan in case Gilliam was compromised, although he never thought he would need it like this. That didn't matter though, Jim refused to believe the friendly A.I. would be done in by this incident.

Asha lifted Jim inside on top of her shoulders, he peeked inside and breathed a sweet sigh of relief. The small room that held the backup mainframe of the Outlaw Star had walls reinforced and the mainframe itself bolted to the floor (now ceiling) in case an enemy's missile got lucky and jostled it around too much. Inside it was nothing but pure data about the Outlaw Stars travel log and backup information, it was off but it was completely intact, Jim had no doubt Gilliam had uploaded himself into it after the Ship fell into the planet's atmosphere before the crash took the power out.

"Yes!" Jim yelled in absolute joy and excitement almost losing his balance on Aishas shoulder.

"Hey! Be careful Jimmy, you don't need a broken head too" Aisha reprimanded him. Which Aisha felt was slightly out of character for herself. _bleh I'm starting to sound like my mother_.

Jim simply chuckled "Sorry Aisha it's just that Gilliam is okay"

Aisha had never cared for Gilliam that little pill bot always reprimanded her about being too rough on the ship. She would almost have chucked him like a ball once but Jim told her not to, as if she almost killed his pet.

Jim was happy until he realized that in order to get Gilliam out he needed power to turn the backup on and one of his handheld computers to contact Gilliam, both of which were lost in the crash. Turning his smile into a frown.

Aisha saw this when she looked up at him.

"What's wrong Jim?"

"I just realized that I can't get him out, I don't have the tech to do it" He replied head down looking at her.

Aisha comforted him "don't worry, we'll just get him later"

Jim knew she was right, unlike the rest the crew Gilliam wasn't going anywhere, so he left his computer friend be for now.

…

Aisha was starving and she needed to hunt. She didn't want to leave Jim alone but she needed food and she wasn't gonna be much help to him if she didn't have the energy to protect him.

"Jim, I'm gonna have to leave you alone for a little bit… I going to hunt and see what's outside" She told him as he was sitting in the hallway.

While Jim didn't say it, he was terrified at the prospect of being alone but Aisha needed food and he knew he couldn't keep her from it.

"okay…Just…be back soon" Jim said with false sense of confidence.

Aisha immediately noticed and tried to assure him, keeling down next to him and giving him a big hug.

"I'll be back, okay"

Jim at first was stunned but ever so slowly returned the hug, causing Aisha to smile.

Before Aisha jumped down to the cockpit to leave, she looked at Jim and knew she couldn't simply leave him without giving him something to defend himself. She pulled out the gun she carried and handed it to him. When seeing it, Jim simply nodded and took it. Aisha couldn't lie to herself she didn't like giving it to him, making a child fend for themselves like this felt wrong but making him defenseless was even worse. She also made sure to grab one of the blankets and wrap it around his shoulders, the cold would no doubt worsen throughout the day.

After Jim watched her leave, he looked at the gun in his hand, he had used one before but never had actually killed someone with it. He was an awful shot and always missed, perhaps that was due to cowardice or poor skills. No matter the reason, he simply hoped he wouldn't have to use it at all. He looked out from the hallway to the cockpit that led outside.

"Please hurry Aisha"


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I don't own Outlaw Star**

 **Authors Note: originally I had a completely different version of this chapter but I would like to thank Isaac for giving me some great ideas. Thank you Isaac for the great suggestions and I hope you continue to enjoy. Also I would like to apologize for the bad spelling and grammar from the previous chapter, I have gone back to try and fix most of them. I usually write these late at night and am pretty tired, so I don't always notice my mistakes. Again thank you to those that read and review this, I really like getting feedback.**

 **Second note (2/5/2017): I reread some of the previous chapters and found Aisha saying her name in the third person so much to be a bit jarring, so I went back and changed a lot of them to have her talk in the first person instead. I think it flows a little better**

 **Third note (2/22/2017): to those reading this, I'm sorry that the next chapter is taking so long, I had a long chapter planned for chapter 5 but due to technical difficulty's it was erased. Don't worry I'm not abandoning this story but it may take another week or two before the next chapter is done. Again thank you to those that read this and I hope you enjoy the next chapter when it's done.**

Chapter 4: The Hunt

leafless trees were rooted sporadically across the terrain, with snow covering their long branches. As Aisha walked she could see the land and mountains covered in a white blanket seemingly never-ending with a cold wind bristling her hair and face. Before looking for a meal, Aisha had to try and find some hints as to what had happened to the rest of the crew. Despite the wind, the footprints that Aisha had seen when she had woken up were still there, though slightly faded. She followed them, hoping it would hold the answer to her missing friends' whereabouts, only to be disappointed. The tracks stopped three miles out from where the Outlaw Star had crashed, in front a wooded area.

The level of snow around her was a level lower than the rest. It seemed a strong wind must have blown the snow around taking the footprints along with them. The disappearing of the tracks would mean that she would have to rely on something else.

She tried using her enhanced sense of smell, sniffing the air in order to pick up her friends' scent. While you wouldn't think it at first, Aisha's Ctarl-Ctarl nose gave her great insight into the thoughts, daily lives and patterns of her compatriots, by smelling the pheromones and body odor of her Terran companions.

Suzu always smelt of tea leaves and perfume ( _almost too much in her opinion_ ), and her emotional state was a bit of mystery to her as it seemed she rarely even sweated. While she sometimes tried to hide it, Suzu was quite the gambler. Aisha had been down on her luck enough times to know what the smell of a casino was like, with Suzu covered in the smell of cheap cigarettes and copper coins it wasn't very hard to figure out where she had been. Gene use to always smell the worst, like used socks and beer. Many times in the early morning, Aisha felt the need to puke from the smell of the cheap women he reeked of when he came back to the shop. Although, she was happy to say that his hygiene and philandering problems were put to an end after he and Melfina became a thing. Due to Melfinas robotic body she rarely smelled like anything except the food she cooked, which initially Aisha didn't mind but after she started dating Gene she eventually just smelled like him, albeit cleaner.

Then there was Jim, you would be surprised what kind of perspective scent gave Aisha when it came to Jim. Back when Jim and her first met she didn't like him, in fact he seemed kind of useless to her. To Aisha, Jim was some errand boy that Gene dragged around because who else was going to? He wasn't really anyone worth paying attention to, just some know-it-all kid that was over his head. He was an annoyance and that feeling seemed to be mutual. That all changed when Aisha began to smell all kinds of different scents from him that showed her things that she would never have expected. Some mornings Jim smelled like motor oil from his retro vehicle that he loved and cherished so much. At the times where he was scared for the well-being of others ( _including her_ ), his pheromones would be potent with fear although he would try to hide it. But it was actually the simple smell of coffee that showed what kind of person Jim was. Aisha like always got distracted and found herself going down memory lane

…

One night during the second month she had joined Gene and Jim, Aisha got up to use the restroom and on her way she smelled the distinct scent of coffee coming from somewhere in the shop. She knew that Gene was out and that Suzu only drank tea, so it wasn't them. She knew it wasn't really important but she had to see where it was coming from. The Smell lead her all the way to a light coming from Jim's room, whom she wasn't well acquainted with and perhaps thought it would be awkward to barge into his room so late at night. But Aisha was rarely one for subtly and simply walked inside only to see something that simply confused her.

Jim was sitting in his chair head back asleep while his computer ran, coffee to the side of him and jacket to floor. She got closer to see that the area around his eyes were baggy and his mouth open. What surprised her was the contents on his desk, spread around it were nothing but papers dealing with taxes, fees, and finances while plans on how to improve the ship were in a stack. She couldn't believe someone so young had taken upon himself to do these things for the entire crew. He was just a kid and he was willing to work himself to the point of exhaustion for them. He suddenly began shaking due to the cold in the air, which caused Aisha to do something without really thinking about it, as if her body was moving on it's own. She turned off the monitor to his computer, placed his arms and head onto the table so he was a little more comfortable, and then laid his jacket onto his back to keep him warm. As she walked out she looked at him one more time and turned off the light. It was here that Aisha was beginning to wonder what was wrong with her? Ctarl-Ctarl were not known for such sentimentality but for some reason it felt natural to her. Maybe she saw a little of herself in him, all of Aisha's childhood was focused on adult things. She was the daughter of a prestigious general of the Ctarl-Ctarl empire, great things were expected of her. In the end though, all it had amounted to was a lonely career, a disappointed family and a life cast adrift. She couldn't stand the thought of someone his age already living the same kind of life as her.

"Goodnight Jim" she whispered as she closed the door. She couldn't explain it but she knew this moment was the beginning of their friendship.

…

Hard to believe that she would become responsible for the young man's survival now. Suddenly Aisha realized she had become lost in thought and shook her head to bring her back to her current reality, which was not as sugary sweet as her memories. She had been sniffing for about 10 minutes to no avail their scent was simply lost, but she did catch a whiff of something else. In front of one the trees she found small drops of blood littered in the snow and then looked at the tree itself. Near the bottom was a small hole with something stuck in it, causing her to pry it out with her fingers. It was a bullet, Aisha put together that there was probably a skirmish and the blood was from one of its victims. As Aisha placed the bullet closer to her face, the scent of the blood wafted into her nose. At that moment her eyes dilated, she had gone into hunting mode.

Aisha remembered childhood hunting trips and what this sensation felt like back then. It almost scared her when she tasted her first kill. Her father had told her that her people were not only "born predators" but that "THE CTARL-CTARL ARE THE APEX PREDATORS OF THE GALAXY!" he would exclaim proudly. Due to the sweetness in the smell, she knew the blood wasn't Terran. _After how gross Jim's had smelt, that's a relief_ she thought. She knew it wasn't from Gene or Suzu, and found it to be similar from other planets game.

Aisha quickly followed the scent of the animal for another three miles, the drops of blood soon began to get bigger, the closer she closed in on her prey. As she reached the base of a mountain, she caught a view of it. Puffy blue fur and red eyes were what caught her attention the most. The creature had an appearance similar to that of a Terran wolf, but was two to three times the size with a white mane similar to a lion. Aisha quickly noticed its gashed leg, the blood leaking out created a contrast in the surrounding snow. Her prey was not harmed fatally but certainly enough to put it at a disadvantage. Aisha closed in on it, gaining leverage by climbing onto a perch near striking distance. She extended her claws in preparation for her kill, this needed to be quick, to make it suffer would only be cruel. Right when she was about to jump, her shifting leg causes a rock the size of a fist to fall from the perch.

The animal looks up to see her and growls ready to fight, while she goes in for the kill. The creature bites into Aisha's arm, causing her to yell in pain but that wasn't going to stop her. She takes her other arm and gashes at one of her preys' eyes. Her claw draws blood and takes its eyesight along with it. The creature tosses her away from itself in order to prevent her from causing it pain.

Aisha feels slightly stunned, due to not being prepared for a fight and expected a quick kill. She wipes the snow from her face, seeing her prey preparing itself to charge at her. Suddenly the world seems to be more quiet then it already was, Aisha's mind goes blank as instincts take over. She made a mistake thinking this was simple game, this was two predators fighting for dominance. They zeroed in on each other, in a standoff that seemed to last forever as the blood from their wounds dropped onto the snow.

The two charge each other like gladiators, inside an icy colosseum. Aisha wrestles her prey to the ground until she finally gets it into a headlock. The creature struggles, limbs flailing attempting to free itself. Soon the air leaves its chest and body goes limp. Finally, a loud snap echoes through the open air, the hunt is over. At that moment Aisha allows the fruit of her labor to fall to the ground, and kneels in front it, breath ragged. Right now the world seems dead to Aisha and nothing mattered, until voices seemed to bombard her head.

"BUT NEVER FORGET MY DAUGHTER, WE HUNT TO FEED NOT ONLY OURSELVES BUT THOSE IMPORTANT TO US!"

"oh come on dad, why would I ever hunt for anybody but Aisha?"

"Jim, no matter what happens Aisha will be here"

Suddenly she inhales sharply and her eyes return to normal, It's like she had woken up from a dream. She sees the aftermath of her actions and remembers why she had been here in the first place.

"Don't worry Jim, I haven't forgotten" she had regained her sense and her purpose. After all she had someone important to feed.

Her stomach sounds, as if to remind her as well

"I haven't forgotten that either"


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I don't own Outlaw Star**

 **A/N: WOW this took way longer than it should have but life and technical difficulties really messed up the personal release date I set for this. I hope everyone is still here. Again I just want to thank my readers and respond to them. Thank you, Isaac, for some great story ideas, I used quite a bit of them for this chapter, whenever your friend finishes his comic please send a link. To TheRealXenocide, I'm glad you liked how I wrote the action in the last chapter as it was a bit of an experiment for me. Last, to Rythim, I'm happy you found this story cute so far, I really like the relationship stuff I'm writing, even though I feel I'm really bad at dialogue.I had planned this chapter to be a bit longer but after it got erased I couldn't quite make it the same again. I apologize for this story being a bit of a slow burn, but I'm happy to say the next chapter will reveal some of this story's villains and have some action that I hope to make easily comprehensive. I also apologize for any lore discrepancies in this chapter. Again thank you to those that read, review, follow and favorite.**

 **A/N (4/4/2017): Did some small touch ups and added a couple bits of dialogue that I had forgotten to put in. like I said It's late and I'm tired when I write these.**

 **A/N (5/28/2017): I apologize for taking so long to post the next chapter, life has been so busy, but worry not I will not abandon this story. I will finish the next chapter, I plan for it to be a big one with some stuff really happening. I also touched up CH 1 and 2 again and plan to do that with the others if I feel it's necessary, I know your probably sick of that if you noticed it, but you guys deserve better.**

Chapter 5: Survivors

Sometimes you don't know how precious something is until you don't have it anymore. For Jim right now that was water. While he wasn't hungry, his dry cold lips and parched throat emphasized his thirst. Thankfully the Outlaw Star does have a water supply built into it, most ships of this size do for kitchen and bathroom conveniences, but there was a slight issue. Considering how cold it was last night the water in the pipes had probably frozen over.

Jim sighed wrench in hand, one he had grabbed from the floor (ceiling) of his room and placed it on one of the pipes sticking out.

"well here goes nothing" he twisted with great effort not expecting any results, only to be surprised by water spouting out onto his face.

"YES!, thank you something actually went right" he cheered. He quickly grabbed the cup he took from the kitchen and filled it to the brim then twisted the pipe shut. Jim almost choked on the water as he gulped it down, he couldn't lie he really needed a win.

"JIM! I'M BACK"

Jim jumped slightly when Aisha suddenly appeared in the hallway and threw a heavy animal carcass to the ground.

"Dinner is served" She proclaimed with her hands to her hips.

Jim smiled as Aisha seemed pretty proud of herself "Aisha it probably would be better to prepare that...outside" While It seemed maybe Jim was being a bit too anal right now, he didn't wish for this ship to become even more of a mess than it already was.

"oh yeah, your probably right" she replied scratching her head and picked the carcass back up, when suddenly Jim yelped in surprise as Aisha used her free arm to bring him outside the ship along with her.

…

Seeing this planet from outside the comfort of the ship was a bit over-whelming for Jim. He had never seen so much snow in his life, the leafless trees and massive mountains was not a sight he was familiar with but as the sun was beginning to set, he had to admit there was a sense a beauty to such a sight.

Aisha was cutting out the insides of the animal she had killed, which Jim thought looked similar to that of a Terran wolf. She seemed absolutely jubilant despite the circumstances, she had popped out her claws to skin the animal, she probably intended to use the fur, which would explain why she was being a little more particular with the preparations. Although Jim wondered how she could be so happy considering the circumstances, maybe it was just because she was getting ready to eat.

"Did you find any clues to where Gene and the others are?"

Aisha stopped mid-cut to explain.

"I followed a trail a few miles out but it just lead to a dead end, I think someone took them"

Jim wasn't sure what to feel at that point, this whole situation seemed surreal. What if they were dead?

"Do you think it was the ones that shot us down?"

"No. I don't think the ones who shot us down had any intention of dealing with our dead bodies"

"that makes sense, considering the damage that missile did, It's obvious it was meant to turn us into a pile of shrapnel in space" Jim concurred.

"The suns starting to go down so we will have wait on searching for them some more until tomorrow"

As Aisha finished addressing Jim she went back to work on her catch of the day, when suddenly Jim noticed bloody stains on her green sleeves. Sure they both already had spots of blood and traces from wounds on their clothes, but Jim didn't remember their being any marks on her sleeve.

"What happened to your arm?"

Aisha seemed confused by the question, looking at her arm and noticing stains that she didn't remember being there before. She noticed the scabs on her arm looked like teeth marks and she was able to put together where they had come from.

"oh these. You can thank this guy right here?" She joked while holding two stomachs in her hand that had been detached from the animal. She had just finished cleaning the insides of it out, leaving the fur to the side.

Jim was worried about her but he knew kicking up a fuss would probably be more of a hindrance than helpful.

…

With the sun gone, all that was left was endless darkness with only the fire that Jim had made with some branches he had Aisha tear down. Aisha had to admit she was quite surprised to see the tech geek be able to make a spark to light a fire with just a rock and the knife she had found in her room. Their fire was the only source of light seemingly for miles. What had been strange was the lack of any animal activity in the area, perhaps the crash had scared them off or maybe they acknowledged Aisha as a superior predator and stayed clear, either way she felt she could cook her food in relative safety as long as they didn't keep it up for too long. whoever was chasing them was probably still out there somewhere.

Soon they were able to eat their food in peace. Jim wasn't sure what part of the animal he was eating but it tasted shockingly good. Aisha was glad that he seemed to be enjoying it, although he may have just been happy with having any food at all.

"So how's it taste Jim" Maybe it was just the shadows playing tricks on his eyes but Jim could have almost sworn that Aisha had a tail wagging, like a pet who wished to be praised by their owner.

"it tastes great Aisha, thank you for this"

A little bit of gratitude was the only thing Aisha ever really wanted from her friends, It's probably one of the reasons why Gene always angered her, due to him constantly refusing to thank her for anything. That and calling her an animal, which was not something Aisha appreciated. Jim remembered calling her an animal jokingly once and seeing the look of disappointment on her face, he decided that was not something he would ever do again. If Gene were here, he would probably be fighting with Aisha right now, Mel would tell them to settle down and Suzuka would just say how childish they were being.

While most would find that situation irritating and it was, to Jim that was just the sound of normal and right now Jim really missed it.

"we'll find them Jim don't you worry"

"what?"

"I can always tell what you're thinking and I know that you're wondering If we'll find the others"

"heh...guess I can't keep anything from you huh Aisha"

"Nope"

Jim relaxed and went back to his meal. Aisha was chowing down on the animals leg which made him wonder "By the way, What part of the animal am I eating?"

"the testicle"

"PTHU! GROSS"

The Ctarl-Ctarl laughed nonstop, falling on her back in the snow.

...

Soon both of them saw no reason to stay up any longer and decided to turn in for the night. After Aisha had gone to do something with the fur, Jim wasn't sure what, They decided to hole themselves up in her room, with the doors securely shut to keep the cold and wildlife out. Jim was slightly embarrassed seeing her private materials thrown around the room, When he saw a pair of undergarments he quickly looked the other way. Then came the subject of their sleeping arrangements, they only had a few blankets and miscellaneous clothes left around the ship; With Jim's small stature, damaged leg and a lack of fire, Aisha knew that Jim needed more than just that to keep him warm. She had already decided on a method to fix this but she knew that he would probably be too embarrassed to broach the subject himself, so she took the initiative.

"Hey Jimmy, come over here" At that moment Jim seemed slightly perplexed and came her way.

"What's up Aisha? Did you need something?" When suddenly Aisha draped her arms around him, brought his face against her chest and brought him down on the floor with her in a tight embrace.

"HEY! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!?" He exclaimed with his voice slightly muffled by his feline friend's chest, while he struggled to free himself.

"Oh just settle down, you know very well that the best way to stay warm is through body heat" She told him with her head perched over his. She had kept the blankets next to her and used one hand to drape them over themselves.

"Besides you didn't mind me holding you like this last night" She said with an impish smile, to which all Jim could do was blush at her teasing.

At that moment Aisha could tell Jim was quite restless, she felt his heart beating rapidly in his chest and would probably not sleep as easily as she had wanted, so she thought of a way to calm him down.

"You know eating together with you reminded me a lot of Ctarl-Ctarl" she whispered.

"Why's that?" Jim asked as he had to admit he was intrigued. Out of the many planets the Outlaw Star had visited, his own crewmate's home world was not one of them.

"Every year on Ctarl-Ctarl, my people would have a sacred hunt and eat a gigantic feast in honor of the mighty god of Ctarl-Ctarl. It's meant to show gratitude for the great empire he bestowed upon us"

Jim thought that sounded quite similar to an old holiday his people use to celebrate thousands of years ago, he couldn't remember the name of it. He could already imagine the sight, Ctarl-Ctarl swarming a massive buffet table, eating with their bare hands and filled with familial joy. Family was something he was not all that experienced with, at least not in a traditional sense.

"Hey Aisha...what's your family like"

Aisha froze for brief moment, if she was being honest with herself she hadn't really thought much about her family, maybe she was scared to think about them, After all, what would they think of her now?

"My father is the greatest Ctarl-Ctarl I've ever known, he helped me become the mighty warrior Aisha is today. My older brother was always better than me at everything, he used to tease me all the time about it, but I knew he loved me." At that moment Aisha began to smile, only for it to fade.

"My mother hated me, I think she thought I was too weak."

Jim blinked in surprise. Aisha weak, such a thought to him was ridiculous.

"Why would she ever think that?"

"My mother told me I was too Naive. I remember when I was as small as you" –Jim tried to glare at her to no avail due to her tight embrace-"I was doing homework about the war between the Ctarl-Ctarl and the Terrans 100 years ago. I actually had Grandparents on both sides of my family serve in that war you know, but when I asked her why we weren't more friendly with Terrans after we signed the peace treaty? she laughed at me, called me foolish and said that we should have just killed as many Terrans we could instead of bringing shame on ourselves by groveling to those weaker than us."

At that moment Aisha began to realize maybe that was where her drive to be the best came from and perhaps why her shortcomings bothered her so much. She wanted to show her mother she was not the weakling she said she was.

"My father didn't share those feelings so they fought a lot, My people in general were divided about that war just like my parents, Although My father felt that in the end we made the best decision"

Jim was a bit shaken up by this information. He had never heard such seriousness in Aisha's voice and her description didn't exactly fit the warm image of her people he thought of earlier. Jim knew about the war 100 years ago but never really thought about it when it came to talking to Aisha. After all that war was before either one of them were born.

"You're not weak" he said with conviction.

Aisha actually found it sweet how he attempted to reassure her.

"OF COURSE I'M NOT, Aisha is The Strongest Woman in the Universe, as for my mother despite the feeble bodies you Terrans have, I have grown to see your usefulness" she giggled.

Jim laughed as well, Aisha always had that effect on him. To make him laugh at the strange complexities of life.

"Besides, if I acted like my mother I never would have joined you guys. Although Aisha would probably still be a commander, but who needs a job?" She continued to laugh.

Jim laughed even harder.

"you know I'm really glad you're here Aisha...Do you really think the others are okay?"

"Jimmy I know their okay, After all, we are all survivors, it's what brought us all together"

That seemed to be just the thing Jim needed to hear. Soon he began to feel himself relax, eyelids beginning to grow heavy. The covers and Aisha's body made him cozy and warm. As his thoughts began to dissipate, he heard the sound of a steady beat. It was Aisha's heart and right now he knew as long as that kept beating things were gonna be okay. They were going to find their friends and get off this planet and nothing was going to stop them.


End file.
